While I understand Saber is the most popular heroine...

Too divine

>If HF didn't exist, most people probably wouldn't even know who Sakura is, while Kotomine and Illya would be recognizable for their roles in Fate and UBW.
I don't think this is completely fair because that is completely intentional. It's not like they just didn't know how to write Sakura or anything, a big part of the story is how unimportant she seems in the first two routes

Yes, but her central importance in HF more than makes up for it. Kirei and Illya would be sort of recognizable because of Fate, but the reasons people like them and call them good characters all come in HF, where their development is mostly an interesting sideshow. For "what the characters represent and what they are to the overall story", I'd definitely say Saber/Archer/Sakura are the most important.

>tfw shinji is the wormslut poster and the rincontinence/oldmen/bisexual poster at the same time

im seeing a massive plothole here

I loved HF Archer. "Welp, time to give up on my goal and be a counter guardian again."

He doesn't seen to have survivors guilt, just admiration for Kerry

The power of little sisters.